Great marketing campaign; they just offended anyone who isn’t onboard with TWAW and having men in women’s sport.
Catwhisperer
We’re talking shoe laces that are rainbow coloured, is that all? And… they must be purchased, I presume? Is that why three out of four “don’ts” boil down to “do not refuse to buy the thing”?
J.A.
“Yes Comrade Napoleon, I will be kind harder!”
Sackbut
Among the phrases that have lost all meaning are “be yourself” and “authentic self”. And “identity”.
I find it ironic that they want to “start the conversation” but they forbid any hint of disagreement.
The most revealling bullet point is the one that says that, in order to include “LGBTQ+” people, we must definitely not say: “Sport is about performance, we should not care about identity”.
Thus, the mere equal inclusion of “LGBTQ+” people is not sufficient. After all, “not caring about identity” would still include them (since excluding them on those grounds would entail caring about their identity).
Instead, continual vocal affirmation is required. They request, not just inclusion, but an ongoing chorus of “your identity is valid; you are included”. See also: “Representation on the pitch is so important”.
It is the same regarding race. MLK-style “content of character” colour-blindness is not anything like sufficient these days. Instead, anything short of ongoing laudation of identities “of colour” (and ongoing disparagement of “whiteness”) is woefully inadequate.
As for: “It’s so great to see how many athletes feel able to be themselves”, and “How can we make sure that everyone is included?”, the Aussie athlete who stated that he found this stuff “embarassing” gets hauled up in front of his club and told he has to “explain” himself.
Your Name’s not Bruce?
“How can we be sure everyone is included?”
Well, you’re going to need much larger podiums, and a lot more medals. Maybe don’t bother keeping score, or timing people. Be sure that everyone makes the team, and nobody sits on the bench. Invite spectators in the stands onto the field to play. You can do all those things to include everybody, but you won’t have “sport” any more.
Comments
6 responses to “You have your instructions”
I just want to say:
Rainbow laces won’t make a difference.
Great marketing campaign; they just offended anyone who isn’t onboard with TWAW and having men in women’s sport.
We’re talking shoe laces that are rainbow coloured, is that all? And… they must be purchased, I presume? Is that why three out of four “don’ts” boil down to “do not refuse to buy the thing”?
“Yes Comrade Napoleon, I will be kind harder!”
Among the phrases that have lost all meaning are “be yourself” and “authentic self”. And “identity”.
I find it ironic that they want to “start the conversation” but they forbid any hint of disagreement.
The most revealling bullet point is the one that says that, in order to include “LGBTQ+” people, we must definitely not say: “Sport is about performance, we should not care about identity”.
Thus, the mere equal inclusion of “LGBTQ+” people is not sufficient. After all, “not caring about identity” would still include them (since excluding them on those grounds would entail caring about their identity).
Instead, continual vocal affirmation is required. They request, not just inclusion, but an ongoing chorus of “your identity is valid; you are included”. See also: “Representation on the pitch is so important”.
It is the same regarding race. MLK-style “content of character” colour-blindness is not anything like sufficient these days. Instead, anything short of ongoing laudation of identities “of colour” (and ongoing disparagement of “whiteness”) is woefully inadequate.
As for: “It’s so great to see how many athletes feel able to be themselves”, and “How can we make sure that everyone is included?”, the Aussie athlete who stated that he found this stuff “embarassing” gets hauled up in front of his club and told he has to “explain” himself.
Well, you’re going to need much larger podiums, and a lot more medals. Maybe don’t bother keeping score, or timing people. Be sure that everyone makes the team, and nobody sits on the bench. Invite spectators in the stands onto the field to play. You can do all those things to include everybody, but you won’t have “sport” any more.